Chances of breakthrough in Sunday's Nepali gov't-guerrilla talks still bleak: leaders

If what various leaders, including a government minister, are saying is to be believed, summit talks between the ruling Nepali Seven-Party Alliance (SPA) government and the guerrilla outfit slated for Oct. 15 afternoon is not likely to result in any breakthrough decision.

"The peace talks may not end soon as some technical issues are there to be resolved before the teams come up with a declaration. So it is not necessary that total results may emerge in Sunday's talks," the online edition of the widely read English language daily, The Himalayan Times, quoted Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Hridayesh Tripathi as saying.

This statement coming from the senior government minister contradicts top guerrilla leader Prachanda's avowal at the end of Thursday's talks that the people should expect concrete conclusion through Oct. 15 talks.

A day ahead of Oct. 15 summit talks, top guerrilla leader Prachanda and his deputy Baburam Bhattarai had met Nepali Prime Minister Girja Prasad Koirala in Kathmandu where the guerrilla leaders were learnt to have told Koirala that they are ready to "demonstrate maximum flexibility on the issues of arms if the SPA was ready to abolish monarchy."

But Koirala is learnt to have asked Prachanda and Bhatttarai in the meeting to give up their "impractical" stance on the issue of monarchy.

The idea of abolishing monarchy is not admissible to the Nepali Congress (NC) president and Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, who has been in favor of giving a ceremonial role to the king.

And quite naturally enough, the talks are expected to hit the "stumbling block" in the form of a referendum on monarchy before the election to a Constituent Assembly.

Guerrilla leader Dev Gurung, however, told the website there are chances that Sunday's talks would settle some of the issues, if not all, "since the previous three rounds of talks have created a conducive environment."

Source: Xinhua